THE HUMAN SKELETON AND CONSEQUENCES OF IMPAIRED MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM.

The human skeleton is made largely of bone, and a few parts such as the nose, ears and the soft discs between bones in the backbone which are made of cartilage. The skull, which contain 22 bones have the cranial and the facial bones. The cranial bones enclose and protect the brain. The facial bones protect and provide support for the entrances to the digestive system and the respiratory system.

Next, the vertebral column is also called the spine or backbone. It is compose of a series of bones called vertebrae. The vertebral column encloses and protects the spinal cord. They consist of 7 cervical vertebrae, 12 thoracic vertebrae, 5 lumbar vertebrae, 5 sacrum and 4 coccyx. Between the vertebrae are intervertebral discs which permit movement of the column and absorb vertical shock.

The appendicular skeleton consists of the pectoral girdle, humerus, ulna, radius, pelvic girdle, femur, tibia and fibula. The right and left pectoral girdles each consists of two bones that is a clavicle and a scapula. The humerus is the longest and largest bone of the upper limb. At the shoulder, it articulates with the scapula while at the elbow, it articulates with the ulna and radius. The carpus or wrist of the hand consist of eight small bones called carpals. The metacarpus or palm of the hand contains five bones called metacarpals. Phalanges are the bones of the fingers. In each hand, there are two phalanges in the thumb and three phalanges in each of the other four digits.

The pelvic girdle consist of two hip bones that provide strong and stable support for the vertebral column. The hip bones are joined to each other at a joint called pubic symphysis. The femur or thigh bone is the longest, heaviest and strongest bone in the body. The head of the femur forms a joint with the hip bone while the other end of the femur forms a joint with the tibia. The patella or kneecap is a small triangular bone which protects the knee joint. Beside that’s, the tibia can bears the weight of the body and fibula which is parallel and lateral to the tibia, is smaller than tibia. Next, the tarsus or ankle of the foot contains seven bones called tarsals. Five bones called metatarsals from the skeleton of the metatarsus or foot. The phalanges of the foot resemble those of the hand both in number and arrangement.

In addition, we also have joints. Joint is the place two o more bones meet. At the joint, the bones are held together by tough sheets of elastic fibres called ligaments. A joint that contains a cavity filled with fluid is called a synovial joint. It allow free movement and contains synovial fluid that acts as lubricant which reduces friction between the ends of the bones. The end of bones are covered with cartilage which cushios the joint and absorbs shock instead of to protect the bones from wearing away.

They are different kinds of joint that allow different movement. A hinge joint allows the movement of bones in one plane. It can be found in the elbow, phalanges of the fingers and toes, and the knees. The knee joint allows the lower leg to swing back and forth just like a hinge on a door. The second one is ball-and-socket joints that allows rotational movement of bones in all directions. It also allows the swinging of arms and legs in a circular motion. Examples of ball-and-socket joints are the shoulder joint between the humerus and the pectoral girdle, and the hip joint between the femur and the pelvic girdle.

There are several consequences of impaired muscular-skeletal system that is muscle cramp which is a sudden contraction of muscle, results in a sudden, intense pain and inability to use the affected muscles. A cramp can last from a few seconds to 15 minutes or longer. The second disease is muscular dystrophy. It is caused by the progressive degeneration and weakening of the skeletal muscles that control movement.it also caused by a mutated gene in the X chromosome and mainly affect boys. At present, there is no cure for muscular dystrophy.

The third disease is arthritis. It refer to a group of skeletal disorders that involve inflammation of the joint. The joint will become swollen, stiff and painful. One form of arthritis is osteoarthritis which is part of the ageing process caused by the wear and tear of the cartilage between the bones inside certain joints. It may also result in a decreased production of the synovial fluid in the joints. The patient usually suffers from a painful and stiff knee which restricts daily activities such as walking and climbing stairs. If treatment fail to relieve the pain, a surgeon can replace the damaged joints with artificial ones made of plastic or metal.

Professor: Evil is everywhere, isn’t it? And God did make everything. Correct?

Student: Yes.

Professor: So who created evil?

(Student didn’t answer)

Professor: Is there sickness? Immortality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don’t they?

Student: Yes, sir.

Professor: So, who created them?

(Student had no answer)

Professor: Science says you have 5 senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son.. have you ever seen God?

Student: No, sir.

Professor: Tell us if you have ever heard your God.

Student: No, sir.

Professor: Have you ever felt your God, tasted your God, smelt your God? Have you ever had any sensory perception of God, for that matter?

Student: No, sir. I’m afraid I haven’t.

Professor: Yet you still believe in Him?

Student: Yes.

Professor: According to empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, Science says your God doesn’t exist. What do you say to that, son?

Student: Nothing. I only have my Faith.

Professor: Yes, Faith. And that is the problem Science has.

Student: Professor, is there such a thing as Heat?

Professor: Yes.

Student: And is there such a thing as Cold?

Professor: Yes.

Student: No, sir, there isn’t.

(The Lecture Theatre became very quiet with this turn of events)

Student: Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don’t have anything called cold. We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is no heat, but we can’t go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of Heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.

(There was a pon-drop silence in the Lecture Theatre)

Student: What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?

Professor: Yes. What is night if there isn’t darkness?

Student: You’re wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have Low Light, Normal Light, Bright Light, Flashing Light… But if you have No Light constantly, you have nothing and it’s called Darkness, isn’t it? In reality, darkness isn’t. If it is, You would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn’t you?

Professor: So what is the point you are making, young man?

Student: Sir, my point is, your Philosophical Premise is flawed.

Professor: Flawed? Can you explain how?

Student: Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality. You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can’t even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?

Professor: If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes of course, I do.

Student: Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir?

(The professor shook his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument was going)

Student: Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher?

(The class was in uproar)

Student: Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor’s brain?

(The class broke out into laughter)

Student: Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor’s brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? .. No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established Rules of Empirical, Stable and Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures?

(The room was silent. The Professor stared at the student, his face unfathomable)

Professor: I guess you’ll have to take them on Faith, son.

Student: That is it, sir.. exactly! The link between man and God is Faith. That is all that keeps things alive and moving!